Netflix turned 25 years old today — a significant milestone for a company that started out with a DVD mail subscription in 1999 and grew over the years into a movie-streaming behemoth.
© Netflix
“Netflix and chill”
Known for bringing movies and TV shows to fans worldwide, Netflix, the popular streaming network, founded on August 29, 1997 by Reed Hastings and Mark Randolph, celebrates 25 years today. The company only launched its website www.netflix.com on April 14, 1998. Netflix first began modestly with mailing out red and white DVD envelopes and quickly endeared itself to a public tired of high movie rental fees. The company brought in over 200k subscribers who also were fans of its recommendation engine.
The company’s popularity led to its own slogan “Netflix and chill” where you would invite a friend or significant other to enjoy a movie at your home. The massive popularity of streaming videos and TV shows at home, on an app and in an browser, can be attributed in some part due to the popularity of Netflix who made watching entertainment convenient, familiar, and accessible at any time.
As of 2019, the company has shipped over 5 billion DVDS. The first DVD that Netflix shipped was Beetlejuice in March 1998 starring Winona Ryder, who also stars in the popular show Stranger Things. By 2007, Netflix started offering streaming options. By 2016, Netflix went live in 130 countries. Squid Watch is the most watched show on Netflix.
When Netflix reached its 500,000th subscription, the company invited the subscriber to a company meeting and gave the person a lifetime subscription. Today Netflix is available in 37 languages in 190 countries around the world and has 28 offices.
$NFLX has dominated streaming for a decade. Now it faces stiff competition from Disney+, AppleTV, Paramount Plus, HBO Max and more. Netflix today offers its own storytelling options at scale tailored to markets around the world.
Today, Netflix continues to innovate and influence cultural moments around the globe.
